Pneumatic conveying apparatus.



h P. VAN BERENDONOK.

PNEUMATIC CONVEYING APPARATUS.

APPLIGATION FILED JUNE 9, 1909.

1,005,098, Patented Oct. 3, 1911.

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PHILIPPE VAN BERENDONCK, 'OF BRUSSELS, BELGIUM.

PNEUMATIC CONVEYING APPARATUS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Oct. 3, 1911.

Application filed June 9, 1909. Serial No. 501,124.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, PHILIPPE VAN BEREN- DONOK, engineer, residing at Brussels, in the Kingdom of Belgium, have invented improvements in pneumatic conveying appara tus, and especially an apparatus having a variable conveying capacity for granulated or pulverized material of any kind.

This new apparatus is more especially suitable for the loading and unloading ships, carrying grain or like material in bulk, and provides for the discharging operation thereof; this operation being carried out most rapidly by reason of the facility with which the apparatus can be moved.

In describing the invention in detail, reference will be had to the accompanying drawings forming part of this specification wherein like characters denote corresponding parts in the several views, and in which Figure 1 illustrates an apparatus embodying the invention, partly in longitudinal section and part in side elevation. Fig. 2 is a back elevation view of the apparatus proper, a part of which has been broken away. Fig. 3 is a section on line A-B of Fig. 1. Fig. 4 is a detail view.

The apparatus illustrated has for its objects: 1, to provide for an easier entrance of fresh air in the compressing cylinder after the first half of the sucking stroke of the piston, thereby reducing the counterpressure of the piston, this object being attained by the addition of a supplemental 2, to eliminate the duct which in similar apparatus forms a kind of loop which hinders the easy passage and delivery of the material. 3, to dispense with such member, as a sieve or the like, in the air delivery pipe, when the material is being forced into the escape duct. 4, to provide a special device in the delivery duct which device works as an automatic valve. k I

The compression cylinder 1 is provided in this form of embodiment with a flap valve 29 for the admission of air, this valve being positioned intermediately of the cylinder. The said valve is constructed like the valves 3, 4, provided on the heads of the cylinder, and the angles of oscillation of this flap 29 can be controlled by means of nuts 5 on the screw threaded rod 6.

This apparatus is also double acting, each cylinder head being provided with tubular extensions or elbows 7, each of which is adapted to connect with a vertically dis posed air pipe 30. In Fig. 2, one of these pipes is detached and is shown in Fig. 3, broken away at its top and turned at right angles to the other member 30 in Fig. 2.

These air pipes have preferably a straight,

smooth and unbroken surface for providing a strong and uninterrupted passage of air therethrough. The upper part of this pipe constitutes, at certain moments, during the operation of the apparatus, a part of the 34 and the upper duct 35, which latter communicates with the discharge pipe to which it is secured and which leads to the place where the material is to be delivered. The lower pipe 32 is provided with a valve 36 formed of a flexible chromium leather plate or of another suitable material, this plate being suitably secured in front of the opening of the end of the elbow 31. The lower part of the straight duct 33, which is connected with the vertical pipe 30 by means of an elbow 31 and a flange 36, is surrounded by a sleeve 39 secured to two lateral extensions 40, by means of screw bolts 41, and slots receiving them. By means of the said slots the sleeve can be vertically shifted with reference to the pipe 32 which is surrounded by it, whereby the amount of air entering through the annular space 42 can be controlled.

The wall of the pipe 32 is provided, at a suitable height with a circular opening 43 which is covered with a foraminous screen 44 and is surrounded on its outside by an annular valve seat 45 (Fig. 2), carrying a valve 46. Surrounding said valve is a curved connection pipe 47 constituting an intercommunicating port, the upper end 48 of which opens out into the vertical air pipe 30. The stroke of the valve 46 is limited by means of a stop or abutment 49.

The lower and upper ducts 33 and 35 re spectively are connected by the box 34, the central part of which is enlarged. This box serves as a supporting and continuing means for a special valve 50, formed from an elastie tube such, for instance, as vulcanized rubber. It is of the utmost importance that this tube be vulcanized in-the shape which is shown in Fig. 1. In order to elucidate the construction of this member :let a tube, having a circular section, be considered as having its intermediate portion flattened so that its opposite walls are contiguous and parallel, and that this tube of raw rubber is vulcanized in the flattened state described so that it automatically assumes this flattened form after the passage through the pipe of an air current or the like. As readily seen, this member forms an automatic valve, the parts of the walls of which are in contact with each other forming simultaneously the valve seat and the'valve body.

The operation of the apparatus is as follows: The piston 2 being moved in the direction of the arrow by any proper'means, tends to produce a vacuum behind it (Fig.

1), but when it passes over the front edge 51 of the opening- 52, the flap valve 29 is opened by the suction the air enters the space 53, so that the piston no longer produces a vacuum behind it and is relieved of the suctionwhich had tended to retard its motion. Entrance of the air into the space 53 Y is therefore rendered much easier and the plied tightly against the wall of the tube efliciency of the compressing cylinder increased.

The partial vacuum created in the space 53, during the stroke of the piston, until' the opening of the port 52 is eflected spreads in-the direction of the arrows I and produces the inflowing of the material, into which the lower end'of the receiving pipe 33 has been dipped after the position of the controlling sleeve 39 has been suitably determined and adjusted;

As readily seen the flap valve 46 opens while the other valve 36 closes, whereby the material enters the duct 32, which forms a receptacle, and thus is filled up to a predetermined height. This half stroke of the piston is sufficient for creating the vacuum which is necessary for sucking in the predetermined amount of material.

When the piston returns, in a direction oppositeto that of the arrow, the air con- *tained in the space 53 of the cylinder is forced out in the direction of the arrows II so that now the flap 36 opens while the other 46 closes.-

The leather flap of the valve 36' is ap- 32 and closes the opening thereof. It fol- ;lows therefrom that the current of com- {pressed airente'rs under the material which surrounds the entrance of the pipe 32 and forces it upward in the direction of the arrows III. The contiguous and parallel sides of the flexible valve are separated under this pressure of the material and allow, it to enter the discharge pipe 35. As

soon as thismaterial has passed, the walls of the flexible pipe immediately and automatically approach each other under the action of their natural resilient properties. While this section of the apparatus was conveying a certain amount of material, the other section thereof, connected with the other elbow 7, inversely conveys an approximately equal amount.

Having now particularly described the said invention, I declare that what I claim is:-

1. In a pneumatic elevating and conveying device of the kind described, a

double air compressing cylinder, a tubular extension of the cylinder head, two parallel vertical columns, means for connecting these columns together, a collecting pipe for the material to be elevated, means for connecting one of said columns with the said tubular extension of the air compressing cylinder, an elbow connecting the lower end of the same column with the said receiver pipe for the material to be elevated, a bent pipe connecting the same column at a determined height with the upper part of said receiver pipe, a tubular extension secured to the said receiver pipe and projecting into the opening of said bent connecting pipe, a flap valve on the end of said tubular extension adapted to close the passage between the said receiver pipe and the said bent connecting pipe and a screen on the opening of said receiver pipe leading to the said tubular extension, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

. 2. In a pneumatic conveying apparatus the combination of a receiving pipe, a dcllvery p1pe,'an automatic valve inserted between said receiving and delivery pipes,

said valve being'formed by a flattened india rubber tube (50), substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

3. In a pneumatic conveying device of the kind described the combination of the receiving pipe for the divided material and the delivery pipe (35) for same of a tubular valve inserted between said receiving and delivery pipes and formed of a raw india rubber tube vulcanized in fiatvtened state with the object of normally holding its walls in contact with each other and this along a line which is perpendicular to 'thelongitudinal axis of said tube and an iron jacket provided on the outside of said valve and protecting same, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

4:. In a pneumatic conveying apparatus, the combination with a double acting air compressing cylinder having two heads and a tubular extension on each of said heads, of

a distinct and separate apparatus connected with each of said tubular extensions, each said apparatus comprising an air pipe, a re- .celvlng plpe connected to the air pipe, a

ing pipe, intercommunicating ports between the air pipe and the receiving pipe, valves in said ports, a delivery pipe alined with the receiving pipe, and a valve of resilient material between the said receiving pipe and the delivery pipe.

PHILIPPE VAN BERENDONCK.

valve between the air pipe and the receiving pipe, an elbow and a connecting pipe communicating with and between the said pipes, a valve in said elbow, a valve in said 5 connecting pipe, at delivery pipe, and a valve between said receiving and said delivery 1 e. P In a pneumatic conveying apparatus, an air compressing and sucking cylinder, an 10 air pipe connected to the cylinder, a receiv- Witnesses:

S. L. SUERLcE, JAMES M. G. FEAY.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. C. 

